Locks
by presidentallosaurus
Summary: Two girls get locked out in the same night. What could happen?
1. Chapter 1

Anna rushed out of her apartment, closing the door, locking it, and turning around to see the most intense rainstorm of her life crashing down outside the apartment complex. Her face fell and she briefly considered calling in to cancel, but decided against it. People were waiting for her! So she turned around, grabbed the handle, realized she'd locked it, patted herself down for keys... no keys. She'd locked herself out. Letting out an exasperated groan, Anna thunked her head against her door.

She pulled out her cellphone- she had that, at least- and dialed the landlord's number. No answer.

"Ugh!" Anna muttered, kicking her door several times before turning around in a huff, leaning back aqgainst the door, and sitting down against it, knees up against her chest. A cold wind blew into her as someone opened the door downstairs to the complex, causing her to pull her hoodie tighter around her. "Better call Hans..."

As she dialed the number, she heard the sound of heels clicking against the staircase approaching her floor, and looked up expectantly. A flash of blonde hair entered her vision and she closed her eyes, groaning inwardly. It was her next door neighbor the Ice Queen- always business, always well-groomed and dressed in suits. Kristoff, her upstairs neighbor and friend, had said she was CEO of some bigwig company, but Anna hadn't caught the name of it. She'd waved hello a few times and gotten a tight smile in return. She didn't think the woman liked her very much. Anna had asked politely once if her music bothered her and the woman had looked practically ambushed by the question, stammering out a "No" and fleeing into her apartment. The door slamming shut had hurt Anna as much as any slap could have.

She was very beautiful. Normally her hair, kept wrapped in a braid, was done up across her head in a very regal-looking style, but tonight, it was down, and wet. Anna realized with a start that the Ice Queen was not dressed in her usual conservative clothing- she was wearing a low-slung blue dress made of some see-through material up top and along the sleeves, turning opaque and sleek as it flowed down over her hips- hips Anna found herself shamelessly staring at, but how could she not? There were slits going up the dress to the woman's thighs, as if she had painted a big blue arrow saying "LOOK AT THESE HIPS." She was wearing those lovely elegant gloves she was always wearing, too. They fit so snug and delicately on her hands.

"Anna?... ANNA." Hans yelled over the phone, snapping Anna out of her reverie. Praying the woman hadn't seen her staring she turned her head into the phone and tried to stare at the floor, hoping her blush would be construed as a reaction to the cold.

"Hey, Hans? Sorry about that. I, um. I can't make it tonight, I kind of locked myself out of my apartment and my keys are still inside. I don't think I'm making it anywhere tonight."

Elsa fiddled with her purse, losing her calm as she realized that she was missing her keys. She'd been chaffeured to the party that night and back, so she hadn't needed them... until now. She'd made it through the night without having to speak to anyone, but here she was trapped at the finish line, safe haven just a locked door away. She groaned and let her head THUNK on her door, pressing one hand against the wood. Trapped outside. She lightly pressed a gloved finger to the keyhole, and was snapped out of her tipsy daze by the sound of the girl beside her door.

"I know, I know!" There was a pleading tone to the girl's voice, one that made Elsa feel on edge. "I'm sorry, okay? I didn't mean to- I'm such a klutz." The girl groaned and bumped her head back against her door. "I know! I know what it means to the club. I can't DO anything about that, Hans. You're going to have to find someone else for tonight. I'm sorry." The girl turned her phone off and looked at the ceiling with her eyes closed. Elsa felt sorry for her- the girl clearly had some kind of appointment and was forced to cancel. Elsa knew how that felt, although she imagined her cancelled appointments had higher stakes.

This girl, though. Something about her had caught her eye. She wasn't sure if it was the freckles or the startlingly similiar facial structure, although they were certainly part of it. Maybe it was her mercurial nature or friendliness. Every time she'd seen the girl, the girl had tried to make eye contact with her and waved hello or tried to make conversation. Elsa wasn't sure how to respond, ever, and so many responses whirled through her mind- waving back, saying hello, smiling at the only person she knew who _genuinely smiled_ at her, being invited in for a cup of coffee, and then they would watch movies and share gossip over orange juice and eggs and do all the things Elsa never got to do..

_Whoa, where did those thoughts come from?_ Elsa thought, a heated blush rising up into her cheeks. _Coffee first_. Did her neighbor even like coffee? _Maybe I should just forget about it..._

"Hey, don't be embarassed." The girl called out softly, loud enough to be heard over the rain but lacking her usual energy. "I locked myself out, too. Haha." She shifted over to rest against her door frame, within an arm's reach of Elsa now.

_Say something, Elsa. Say something!_

"Um, hi." Elsa said. The girl's eyes visibly widened and a smile crept onto her lips.

_Good start! Keep going._

"I didn't lock myself out, my keys are... in my car." Elsa hedged. That wasn't totally untrue. They could be. "Out there..."

"Oooh. At least you don't have as far to go as I do, I needed to hit the convenience store down the block." The girl laughed quietly. "Now I get to spend Friday night alone and hungry stuck outside my apartment." She took a breath and sighed. "Sorry, I shouldn't be... I talk too much."

_You're adorable._

"You're adorable." Elsa said, then clamped her hand over her mouth. As the girl made a curious expression. "I mean, it's okay, I um, I have the opposite problem." The girl continued to look at her curiously, clearly wondering if she had heard what she thought she heard.

_Distract her, distract her..._

"My name's Elsa." She blurted out. That did the trick; the girl's eyebrows went up and she smiled in this earnest, genuine way that made Elsa's stomach do flips.

"Anna." The girl said, extending her hand up to Elsa. After a moment's hesitation, Elsa took the girl's hand and shook it like they were exchanging letters. Anna clasped her hand firmly, giving a vigorous shake. "Pleased to meet you. Greet you."

"Yes. Sorry about the... extenuating..? circumstances." Elsa spoke so nervously, like speaking wasn't something she normally did. She was putting on a good show- her voice was kind and charming, but it was as if the world's loveliest harp was in the hands of a burgeoning harpist. Plucks, whispers, occasional miracles of sound. "I-i-i-iI I'm locked out. too." She managed before swallowing.

"Then I guess we're locked out together tonight. Wanna hang out?" Anna grinned goofily, and though the statement was so mundane, the energy, playfulness, and surreality of Anna's nature endeared Elsa all the same. She felt terrified, that this woman who behaved in ways she couldn't understand, said things she didn't know, was welcoming her. It was like a dragon offering you brunch.

Elsa nodded. "U-um, sure." She smiled. _Hanging out_. That sounded better in her head.

"Do you have an umbrella in your car?" Anna asked.


	2. Chapter 2

Anna scrambled into the backseat of the car as the rain poured down around her. She gave a louder-than-expected yelp and ended up half-curled against Elsa's lap as she clutched at the door and slammed it shut. Elsa herself was wet from the head down, her once perfectly combed locks flat and wet around her face and head, obscuring her eyes. Anna panted and exhaled, then flopped and relaxed her muscles, apparently uncaring of her position against Elsa's body. Elsa, who was as tense as if though Anna had her at sword point, conflicted with thoughts racing at a thousand horsepower.

_Relax, it's just human contact. I can deal with this._ Elsa exhaled. Anna sighed and pushed herself off Elsa, getting into a proper sitting position. Elsa couldn't help but feel a slight tinge of disappointment, but maybe it was better that way- too much too soon!

"Swanky car." Anna said, looking around. "This must have cost a fortune."

Elsa nodded shyly and looked out of the window to her left at the heavy rain. "My father gave it to me on my twentieth birthday." She said quietly. She fished the keys out of the ignition.

"Are we taking the car?" Anna asked excitedly.

Elsa looked over. "I thought you said it was just half a block?"

"Oh!" Anna shifted uncomfortably. "I did. Say, um, how old are you? If you're okay with me asking?"

Elsa gave a small, slight smile. "Twenty.."

"Really!" Anna said, genuinely surprised. "I'm seventeen."

_Only seventeen? Oh no.. but she acts so much older.. _Elsa's smile faltered. Anna noticed and she quickly stammered out, "B-b-but my birthday's next month! So you know, I'm basically legal! Er, not that I mean it matters that I'm legal, just that I'll be legal so I can do all sorts of things that you can only do with, um, what am I saying? I just meant I'm- I can do anything legally! No, wait, that's not it, I mean, you can do anything you want with me and it'll be legal- oh god that sounds so wrong, um, I'm just going to, ah..." Anna clammed up, holding her hands over her mouth to physically prevent herself from digging any deeper a hole.

Elsa held up two fingers to her mouth, hiding her amused smile at Anna's rambling. She took the moment to just inspect the girl as they were both silent for a moment. Anna had freckles- beautiful freckles, numerous freckles, and they brought out the loveliness of her eyes and lips.

_What are you doing she's watching you stare at her!_

Both girls flushed and looked away at the same moment. Anna spoke first. "So, um, how about that umbrella?"

"Oh, it's right here." Elsa reached under the seat and pulled it out, then frowned. "It's a bit small for two people though."

"That's okay! We can fit underneath." Anna took the umbrella from Elsa's hands and gave it a shake, popping it open as far as it would go inside the car. "Yeah, I think we'll fit underneath it just fine. It should hold us until we reach the convenience store, it's only half a block away." Anna went to open the door.

"Wait!" Elsa paused as Anna turned to give her a curious look. "I'm... - I'm not ready." Elsa confessed. "I need to, um, prepare. In my head."

"For some rain?" Anna asked incredulously "It's just a little water."

"I know, I'm just- I'm not-" Elsa swallowed, falling silent. Her focus was distant, lost in thought, straining against some mental bond.

"Hey, it's okay." Anna's expression dropped into a concerned gaze, and she watched Elsa carefully, taking note of Elsa's increased breathing rate, her tense hands, her scrunched up face. "We're not diving off a cliff here, it's just rain. Are you okay?"

Elsa nodded, but then shook her head from side to side to indicate no, she was not okay.

"Okay.. here's what we're going to do." Anna instructed. "I'm going to get out and open the umbrella, and I'll hold it over the door. You climb over and out the door, and I'll keep the umbrella over your head so you don't get wet. Okay?"

_It's not the rain that I'm afraid of. _ Elsa bit her lower lip and nodded anyways.

"Okay. Here we go. One, two... hup!" Anna unfolded the umbrella and held it over the door, extending her free hand towards Elsa. Elsa, who sat there for a moment nervously, then took slow steps forward over the backseat, trembling. Her hand slipped into Anna's like silk sliding into folded cotton, Anna's hand clasping and pulling. Safely tucked under the umbrella, Anna kicked the door shut and escorted Elsa over to the sidewalk, keeping them both in the safety of the umbrella's shade. "It's only a quick walk, come on. We'll hurry, focus on getting there. Don't focus on the rain, focus on me, okay?" Anna squeezed Elsa's hand gently.

_That's exactly what I'm trying not to focus on! _Elsa grumbled in her head. Without warning Anna slipped her hand around Elsa's waist and pulled her closer- the two of them suddenly pressed side to side and their bodies clicked together like lock and key, walking in sync with their hips sliding side to side in harmony.

"There, now we fit under the umbrella." Anna said. "Just focus on walking. Okay?"

_Who is this person who acts so intimate with strangers? Who helps people she doesn't even know?_

* * *

><p>"Not much of a talker, are you?" Anna asked, a hint of amusement in her voice. "That's okay, I talk enough for two people anyways. It's totally cool, though. I mean, the whole shy thing. I knew someone when I was younger who had problems talking to people, so I know how it is, so don't worry about me judging you or anything." The taller woman didn't say anything but gave a little nod and a tight smile. "Also, thanks for letting me borrow you- I mean your umbrella. I would've gotten sick in this rain if I had to run out here by myself. We really should have taken the car if you're this tense about it..."<p>

Anna exhaled and focused on walking with the woman in sync. She was surprised how easily the woman took to walking with her. The two managed to make it into the convenience store without issue, passing by a loitering vagrant who was using the roof of the shop to take cover from the rain. The grainy light from the street lamp flickered.

The guy behind the counter looked up boredly as they walked in. Elsa noticed the slurpee machine in the corner, the red viscous liquid inside swirling slowly as the machine did its work. She gave a shy smile to Anna as she took off, slurpees was one of the things she loved most. Cherry was her favorite. As she was filling the cup with icy goodness she noticed Anna was doing a speed-sweep of the store, apparently knowledgeable of where everything was, picking up candy, snacks, a cherry pop. They ended up back together at the register, Anna with a basket full of groceries and Elsa with the cup in her hand, slowly chilling her palm and fingers and she clutched it

Anna refused to let Elsa pay for her slurpee, insisting that she'd cover it. In the end the shy girl reluctantly agreed, afraid it'd turn into an issue otherwise. Besides, who can say no to free slurpees?

When they walked out of the store, Anna quickly blossomed up the umbrella again and offered her hand to Elsa. This time Elsa slipped easily against her, seeking out her hand, nervously sliding her fingers against Anna's palm, and the two began to walk in sync back to the apartment complex.

_Never met someone so eager to be friends before_. Anna thought to herself, smiling kindly in Elsa's direction. _She seems so familiar, and we've only just met. I wonder if we've met before?_ _No.. no, I think I would remember someone like her. _Elsa offered a sip of her slurpee and Anna gladly took it.

It was all too soon that they were back at their apartment complex, their doors standing in front of them like prison gates to their normal lives. Anna gave her doorknob a quick jiggle and yes, it was unlocked now. The manager must have stopped by. She turned around to face Elsa, hopeful yet glum.

"So-" Anna said.

"I had-" Elsa said, then stopped, looking at the ground.

Anna faltered and looked around nervously, stifling an awkward chuckle. "Um… see you around, I guess?"

Elsa smiled, her eyes flicking up to just barely meet Anna's. "I would like that, yes. Thank you for the slurpee." She opened her door and took a step through, looking back at Anna.

"Oh, no problem! Thanks for the company." Anna strained for something to say to keep the conversation going, but her tongue failed her. "I guess.. have a good night!"

Elsa closed the door on her. Anna grimaced and slid inside her apartment, closing the door with a careful 'click' and resting against it. "Ouch." She muttered.

Elsa thumped her forehead against her door.

_Stupid, stupid, all you had to do was say you too. Stupid, stupid.._


	3. Chapter 3

_I don't own Frozen. Many, MANY thanks to my beta for her hard work and lessons._

* * *

><p>The next few weeks were a string of awkward situations, meetings in hallways that consisted of nothing more than a wave and a smile. It rained often and heavily, leading to many days spent indoors. Until that Friday morning, three weeks after that first meeting, that Elsa heard a soft rap at her door.<p>

Elsa froze where she was, cooking scrambled eggs half-dressed, a glass of chocolate milk and a pot of coffee on the counter.

"Knock knock?" Anna's voice called cautiously when there was no immediate response. After a moment of silence, the rap came again. Tap, taptaptap, tap-tap.

Elsa shuffled over to the door nervously, looking through the peephole to see Anna leaning up and pressing her ear to the door, holding something out of sight. Elsa unlocked the door with a click and cracked it open carefully, brushing falling bangs back over her hair and smiling like a little mouse cornered by a cat. Anna was in PJs, barefoot. Her clothes had smiley faces imprinted all over them. She smelled like cereal and toothpaste.

"Good morning!" Anna said, then continued without waiting for a response. "Um, do you have a cup of sugar I could borrow?"

Elsa relaxed and took a moment to reflect on the question asked of her, then a few moments more than one should really need to consider whether or not to give someone a cup of sugar. Coming to a decision, she nodded tersely, shuffling over to her kitchen to fetch it. She had plenty of sugar to spare, she rarely made anything more complicated than breakfast. She opened the cupboard door, reached up on her tip-toes to the shelf with the sugar, and pulled it down, closing the door again. Anna's head had been hidden behind it, looking around the kitchen admiringly. Elsa had forgotten to close the door and it seemed the redhead had invited herself inside.

"Nice place!" Anna commented just as she came into view, and Elsa jerked in surprise, dropping the bag of sugar on the floor and backing away, clutching her chest as if she'd had a heart attack. "Oh, geez! I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to surprise you- you left the door open and I thought that meant- it doesn't matter what I thought it meant, look at this mess, oh, geez, let me clean this up for you.." Anna quickly lifted the bag of sugar and put it on the counter, leaving spilled sugar around it. The redhead then looked around quickly for...- oh there it was, a little brush and pan for cleaning up. She grabbed it off the hook and swept the sugar into the dustpan while Elsa watched, wide eyed and silent.

"I'm SO sorry, I didn't mean to scare you, I - what is that smell?" Anna looked up from the floor. "Elsa, your eggs are burning!" Anna leapt to the stovetop and quickly grabbed the frying pan, causing Elsa to jump back and away as Anna yanked the eggs away and turned the heat off, putting the pan in the sink hastily as a chunk of blackened egg tumbled over the side onto the kitchen floor. She accidentally brushed her foot into one burning morsel and yelped, moving away from it and sliding onto the countertop, knocking the glass of chocolate milk over.

The scene finally settled as Anna stayed there, arms brought up to her chest, while Elsa looked on to the disaster area her kitchen had become in the space of a few seconds. Sugar on the counter, sugar on the floor, steaming eggs in the sink, black bits of food on the floor, chocolate milk on the counter, chocolate milk on the floor, Anna on the counter...

"Um..." Anna slowly righted the chocolate milk glass, sliding it away from her. "I'll just.." She looked up at Elsa, who was looking at Anna as if she were insane.

Nothing in Elsa's isolated past had prepared her for dealing with sprucy redheads creating a disaster scene in her kitchen. In fact, they hadn't taught her how to deal with redheads in any fashion, anything about interacting with other live human beings at all. She knew how to acknowledge people existing when they served a purpose to her. She knew how to fire them and she was very skilled in handpicking people - from their CVs. Never face to face. Never.

Elsa's expression tightened and turned cold. "I'm... going to go take a shower." She said, wrapping her arms under her chest. "Please close the door when you're done." She marched out of sight. A door opened, closed. The apartment was silent.

Speechless, Anna stared after Elsa, then at the mess she had made of the kitchen.. Her shoulders slumped and she slowly slid down off the countertop, getting to work on cleaning up the mess she had made.

"Stupid, stupid, STUPID." She muttered, rubbing her wrist across her eyes. "Can't do anything right... shouldn't even have tried, look at this." It only took a minute to clean up the mess and find a trash can to stuff the roll of soiled paper towels in, but it felt like forever to Anna. Like a defeated soldier she bit back her tears and marched quietly out of the apartment, closing the door behind her. 

* * *

><p>Elsa was freaking out, hiding under her covers and holding onto a pillow for dear life, crushing her fingers into the fabric like it was a stress ball. An alarm went off and she yelped, reaching out from under the covers to grab the phone the alarm was coming from. Work could wait. She stayed where she was, waiting. When the sounds from the kitchen stopped she began to calm down enough to move again.<p>

_Father was right, Father was right.. No, must not overreact, must not make a scene._ Elsa pushed the covers away from her. The bedroom door was still closed and locked. When she cracked it open, the door to her apartment was closed and there were no signs of her unfortunate neighbor. Anna didn't deserve to be run out on like that after trying to help. It was all Elsa's fault, she'd left the door open, she'd dropped the sugar, burned the eggs.

The kitchen had been cleaned up, though she was missing a roll of paper towels. At least the glass hadn't broken- and there was a strange cup next to it. It wasn't one of hers. Anna must have brought it over and then forgotten it. She picked it up and inspected it. Anna wouldn't be able to do whatever she needed the cup of sugar for. That was something she could fix.

So it was only mere minutes after the incident in her kitchen that Elsa knocked stiffly on the door to her neighbor's apartment, so softly as if though she didn't want to be heard. "Anna?" She whispered. She was lucky the hallway was devoid of anyone else, she didn't think she'd be able to handle someone seeing her like this, cowering by a door. After a few seconds she began to lose her nerve and turned to retreat back to her room, but the door opened just in time. She steeled herself as best as she could.

Anna cringed and grimaced at the sight of Elsa, looking cold and distant. Surely, she was about to receive the scolding of her life. So much for befriending the older girl.

"Anna." Elsa said, rigidly. Anna braced. "You forgot your cup of sugar. I thought you might want it." She offered the cup, her grip like iron on the handle. "So you could do whatever it was you were going to do with it." Elsa managed to smile, just a little, and it wasn't a real smile, but a smile with the intention to smile, at least, and it was enough. Anna relaxed.

"You- Thank you." Anna said, taking the cup. "I'm sorry about your kitchen, that never happens- okay, that always happens around me, but- I'm sorry."

"That's okay." Elsa said, then just... stood there. Waiting. Unsure. Anna looked down at the cup of sugar until the silence grew awkward.

"You're not going to yell at me?" She gingerly offered. "I did kind of ruin your breakfast."

"Why would I yell at you?" Elsa looked genuinely confused.

"Well, you know, because that's what people do when they're mad." Anna said. Elsa's look of confusion didn't go away, and Anna realized that yes, the older girl was not angry with her. Maybe she could salvage the situation. "You're not mad?"

"No. Why would I be? It wasn't your fault."

"It was TOTALLY my fault." Anna said, and looked behind her at her own, messy apartment. "But if you're not mad, then I'm really thankful. I didn't know how I was going to start my day without some sugar in my coffee. I was going to brew some when I realized we were out, and I figured you might have some, so I- yeah."

"I have coffee already made?" Elsa offered. "Would you like some of that instead?"

Anna smiled and clapped her hands together, bringing them up and around the cup of sugar. "Yes, please!"

Relieved at the atmosphere finally lightening, Elsa smiled a tiny, but real, smile. "Come on over, then, I'll give you some."

Anna ran to her kitchen to put the sugar down and grab her coffee cup, then followed the blonde across the hallway, closing her door behind her with a click. Elsa made herself a cup of chocolate milk while Anna used her coffee pot, inhaling the scent and sighing contently before trying a sip. "What flavor is this? It smells good. Like caramel."

"It's imported. Fazenda Santa Ines." Elsa said, sipping from her glass. "I mix it into my chocolate milk when the glass is half-full.. I like the taste better that way."

"Really? Me too." Anna said. "I mean, I like my coffee LOADED with sugar. Totally unhealthy, but so delicious! It makes a day start so much easier, you know? That's why it was so urgent I came to you instead of the store."

"Mm-hm. You're not late for anything, are you?" Elsa asked suddenly.

"Oh- uh, ah. Y- no, not really." Anna admitted. "I'm a student at a local college but I don't have any classes today. I was just actually going to be watching some Disney movies. By myself. I guess." She waited to see if Elsa got the hint.

"Oh, okay then. That was urgent?" Elsa questioned, genuinely confused.

"...well, not REALLY, no." Anna admitted, hoping Elsa would please pick up the hint.

"Oh, okay then." Elsa sipped her chocolate milk to hide the fact she had no idea what to say.

"Well, I guess I'll be going now. Thank you for the delicious coffee. It's too bad I don't have anyone to share it with while I watch movies. Alone."

"Anytime." Elsa said, smiling faintly.

Anna turned away to hide the frustration and defeat on her face. "Have a good morning then."

Elsa watched the girl leave her apartment. _She seemed very insistent that she watch the movies alone. I wonder if she would have minded me asking to watch them, too. _Elsa thought._ I wish I understood social cues more. Wait, did she want me to-?_ Her thoughts were interrupted by a dull thud outside her door. Curious, she headed back over to the hallway.

Anna was thumping her head on her apartment door, until she heard the squeak of hinges moving and looked back at Elsa with a sheepish grin.

"Forgot my keys." Anna said.

"Oh, that's unfortunate." Elsa said. "Would you like to watch some movies at my place instead?"

Anna fought hard to keep her smile from exploding. "That would be perfect."


End file.
